The Note's Must-Reads for Tuesday, April 8, 2014

The Note's Must-Reads are a round-up of today's political headlines and stories from ABC News and the top U.S. newspapers. Posted Monday through Friday right here at www.abcnews.com

Compiled by ABC News' Jayce Henderson, Will Cantine and Jordan Mazza

UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS EXTENSION ABC News' Arlette Saenz: " Senate Passes Unemployment Benefits Extension, But Fate Uncertain In House" The Senate passed a bill Monday to temporarily extend unemployment insurance for five months, but it remains unclear whether the bill will face a vote in the House of Representatives. The Senate voted 59-38 on the Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act, which served as the vehicle for the unemployment benefits extension. House Speaker John Boehner has indicated that he would only consider extending unemployment insurance if it included provisions to create more jobs. LINK

USA Today's Susan Davis: " Senate Approves Jobless Aid Extension" The U.S. Senate approved legislation Monday that would reinstate expired jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed, but the proposal faces opposition from House Republicans who say it doesn't do enough to spur job creation. The bill passed 59-38. The bipartisan Senate bill, crafted by Sens. Jack Reed, D-R.I., and Dean Heller, R-Nev., is a short-term fix. It would reinstate benefits for five months and would be paid retroactively through May. Unemployment benefits for workers who have been unemployed for longer than 26 weeks expired in December. About 2.79 million Americans will be eligible for benefits if the extension is approved. LINK

The Wall Street Journal's Siobhan Hughes: " Senate Passes bill To Aid Long-Term Unemployed" The Senate voted Monday to restore emergency financial benefits for the long-term unemployed, the first in a series of moves planned by both parties in coming weeks to court core voters this fall. The jobless-aid bill-which passed on a bipartisan 59-38 vote-is just one plank of what Democrats call their fairness agenda, which also includes a measure to promote equal pay for women, up for a vote likely on Wednesday, and another to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, after the spring recess that begins next week. None of these are likely to pass the Republican-controlled House. LINK

The Hill's Ramsey Cox, Vicki Needham and Russell Berman: " Senate Votes To Reinstate Jobless Benefits" The Senate approved a five-month extension of federal unemployment benefits on Monday in a 59-38 vote that saw six Republicans break ranks and vote in favor of the legislation. The bill now goes to the House, where Senior House Republicans have felt little pressure to act on jobless benefits. Although they won't say so directly, they are likely to ignore the Senate bill. Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has suggested the retroactive plan would be difficult to implement, and he said its lack of job-creation measures means it has fallen short of the requirements he set in December for considering an extension of long-term unemployment insurance. LINK

The Washington Times' Jacqueline Kilmas: " House Refuses To Be 'Bullied' By Senate Bill For Extending Unemployment Benefits" Senators approved a five-month extension of long-term unemployment benefits Monday and Democrats said they hoped the vote would put pressure on the House, but strategists said House Republicans have shown they won't be "bullied" into following the Senate's lead. With a two-week Easter recess looming, this week is considered critical for meaningful congressional action. LINK

The Los Angeles Times' Lisa Mascaro: " A Few Republicans Push House To Move On Jobless Bill After Senate OK" As soon as the Democratic-controlled Senate passed a measure Monday to extend unemployment aid to jobless Americans, a beleaguered group of House Republicans from states with high unemployment rates called on Speaker John A. Boehner to follow suit. But the Republican lawmakers are fighting an uphill battle against their leaders, and Boehner has shown little interest in passing an unemployment insurance extension, panning the Senate bill as unworkable. LINK

The Washington Post's Wesley Lowery: " Senate Passes Extension To Unemployment Insurance, Bill Heads To House" The Senate voted 59 to 38 today in favor of a bill that would restore federal funding for extended unemployment benefits for 2.8 million Americans who are considered "long-term unemployed." The deal, carried by Democrat senators but struck with the support of several prominent Republicans, including Sens. Rob Portman (Ohio), Kelly Ayotte (N.H.) and Mark Kirk (Ill.), comes on the Senate's fourth vote on a bill to renew the benefits. Sens. Tom Coburn (R-Ok.), Mary Landrieu (D-La.), and Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) did not cast votes. LINK

GOP Politico's Anna Palmer: " GOP Solution To 'War On Women': Women" Republicans say the Democrats' "war on women" line is fake. But their fear of it is real. More than a dozen female Republican lawmakers gathered last week with GOP operatives to hold a broad discussion on conservative ideas to empower female voters. The party launched a program earlier this year to place more women in Republican campaigns. And the three big national party committees have teamed up to respond to Democratic attacks. They even showcased women who work for the party at the top of their latest talking points. LINK

The Boston Globe's Joshua Miller: " Brown To Declare Quest For Senate" Scott Brown, who will formalize his bid for a New Hampshire US Senate seat on Thursday, is retiring from the National Guard after more than three decades, two of his advisers said. Brown, a colonel, will be honored at a retirement ceremony at the Pentagon on May 13, the advisers said. Since he won an upset US Senate special election victory in Massachusetts in 2010, Brown's military service has been an essential part of his political profile. But he has said it is much more than that, calling it a meaningful part of the sweep of his career. LINK

WHITE HOUSE PAY The New York Times' Michael Shear and Annie Lowrey: " As Obama Spotlights Gender Gap in Wages, His Own Payroll Draws Scrutiny" President Obama on Tuesday will call attention to what he has said is an "embarrassment" in America: the fact that women make, on average, only 77 cents for every dollar that a man earns. But critics of the administration are eager to turn the tables and note that Mr. Obama's White House fares only slightly better. A study released in January showed that female White House staff members make on average 88 cents for every dollar a male staff member earns. LINK

UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS Bloomberg's Michael Bender: " Obama Deports Thousands Who Senate Would Let Stay In U.S." Tens of thousands of undocumented immigrants deported from the U.S. last year may have been eligible to begin the citizenship process under a Senate-passed bill that isn't moving forward in the House. Data from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released to Bloomberg News adds to the pressure that President Barack Obama is facing from labor groups and Democrats in Congress, who want his administration to curtail deportations. LINK

REV AL SHARPTON The New York Daily News' Erin Durkin: " Rev. Al Sharpton Worked As FBI Informant, Taping Conversations With Mob Pals To Help Bring Down Genovese Crime Family: Report" He's had the titles of civil rights activist, presidential candidate and TV host. But for a time, the FBI secretly called the Rev. Al Sharpton something else: "CI-7? - a confidential informant who taped mobsters with a bugged briefcase, helping the feds bring down members of the Genovese crime family, it was revealed Monday. LINK